The relationship between female adolescents' oral contraceptive adherence and autonomy

This exploratory study examines the relation between female adolescents' emotional autonomy and oral contraceptive adherence. The participants were 51 single female adolescents (16, 17, and 18 years old) who had never been pregnant. At the 3-month follow-up, 39 of the subjects (77%) completed the study. Subjects completed the Emotional Autonomy Scale (Steinberg & Silverberg, 1986) initially and at the 3-month follow-up. Oral contraceptive adherence was assessed at the 3-month follow-up. Subjects had relatively high oral contraceptive adherence and autonomy. Oral contraceptive adherence was not associated with autonomy (r = .22, p = .21). Autonomy may be more influential on adolescents' seeking oral contraceptives rather than to adhering to their use.